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Today I’m going to share a very easy DIY project – one that I think is maybe my favourite DIY project ever. I feel like everyone should do this to their home, partly because it is so easy, but mostly because it was actually really fun! I wallpapered a couple of walls in our toilet with pages from a vintage French dictionary. And I love how it turned out.

You don’t have to use pages from a dictionary obviously. I've seen pictures on Pinterest of it done with use maps, music sheets, newspapers, magazine pages (ooh, now I'm thinking vintage equestrian magazines would be cool) comic book pages, children’s storybooks, album covers, family photos.

But I have always been a sucker for lovely old books and when I saw a tattered vintage French dictionary at a secondhand market, straightaway I thought it could make lovely wallpaper. The pages were just so beautiful and the little illustrations so quaint. The man selling apologetically told me it wasn’t in the greatest condition (the binding was loose and the cover hanging off) and said I could have it for three dollars. Sold! Bargain wallpaper.

Now I know there are people who cry blasphemy about ripping up old books, and I do understand where you’re coming from. But here’s how I saw it. We - as well as all our family and friends who visit - would get a whole lot more joy out of this gorgeous book when it’s up on the walls as opposed to sitting away invisibly on a shelf. It keeps what's between its pages alive, in a sense. Your husband’s friends wouldn’t come over for a beer with him and flick admiringly through a beautiful vintage French dictionary, would they?

Maybe I inhaled a bit too much glue, but I got so excited about doing this project once I started. It was just FUN. It made me think that so many DIY and crafty things we do as adults just aren't that fun, are they? Yeah, I love the end result of a good DIY project, the sense of satisfaction. But when it comes to actually DOING the project, to be honest, most of the time I find myself feeling very lazy.

BEFORE: Do you remember the before pics of our toilet (adjoining our laundry) as it was when we bought the Crap Shack? It was a very typical and rather dull 1970s toilet. Recently Mr Nerd gutted the floor tile and we replaced it with beautiful travertine. All that's left to do now is replace the ceiling lights and get a new door for the laundry.

But this wallpaper – it was so much fun I enjoyed the process just as much as I enjoyed the finished result. It made me feel a bit like a kid again. You know when you were a kid and it was art class and you just could not freaking WAIT to paint something or make a demented bowl out of Clay (or even just for the glue to dry on your hands because then you could slowly peel it all off?) Same crazed feel here guys.

I 100% think you should do this project somewhere in your home half because I guarantee you will enjoy it. It’s so easy and simple. I had some matt Mod Podge glue, I brushed it on the wall very lightly with a brush in small patches (it dries fast), I pasted a page up, smoothed it out (you can use your fingers or sleeve, or a credit card). So easy. I wasn't that well that weekend so I took a bit longer than I had expected, but you could easily do this in half a day if you’re efficient.

1. First I cleaned the walls with sugar soap and water and let them fully dry. Then I applied matt Mod Podge glue in small patches. I love Mod Podge - it's water-based so it's not too strong smelling and if we ever wanted to remove the wallpaper we could thoroughly soak it and scrape it off.

2. Don't apply too much glue at once - Mod Podge dries super fast, and you'll want to think about where you put the pages. In my case I didn't want to put too many full-picture pages too close to one another, but wanted to spread them out. I cut out all the pages before so they were ready to go, and used blu tack some times to pin them up so I could step back and see if they looked good.

3. I found a brush easiest for applying glue. It lets you put it on as thinly as you like, which is important - use too much glue and you'll find the finished result doesn't look as smooth. Put a little bit of glue on the edges of each page so you can overlap them and get a nice smooth finish.

4. Kylie from the lovely Lucy Violet Vintage blog advised me to use a credit card to smooth out bubbles in my wallpaper - such a good trick! You can also use your fingers or a soft rag (or your sleeve if you're lazy, like me).

Coffee and good snacks are a DIY must-have. Thank you Sue for the most amazing banana bread ever.

To make it more personal, I chose some pages that had some kind of meaning to us or to our families – like the little map of Italy (where we spent our honeymoon), a little motorbike (for Mr Nerd’s love of bikes) horses (for my love of horses) and all the little illustrated dog breeds (I love how much the French are into their dogs!) The dogs were obviously a tribute to Nala, who was pleased.

I really love how it turned out. And, as my husband pointed out, our toilet also now smells nice - like old books, which is much better than what it sometimes smells like. As strange as it sounds I think the toilet may well now be my favourite room in the house! It’s fun to examine the pages and notice little things you hadn’t before.

It’s not 100 percent finished though – I’m yet to seal it (although I do love the look of it unsealed) and am on the hunt for the perfect sealer that’s not too glossy – let me know if you’ve done similar and what you used! I may be doing very thin coats of Mod Podge or an acrylic sealer with a roller. Will update!

Have you done wallpaper – DIY or otherwise - in your house? Would you consider doing it or do you not like the 'permanence' of wallpaper? What would you use for DIY wallpaper? Would you cut up a book or never? Maya x

I think it looks great! What a clever way to appreciate a book that otherwise would have just gathered dust on a shelf. It's always good to have something to read in the loo, too!
I've also recently wallpapered our toilet and love how it turned out. I think it's a good room to try wallpaper out on as you generally don't need as much paper or time to do it but you get a real surprise (or maybe shock in our case!) when you open the door :)

I love this so much. I used your inspiration to cover my hideous 'faux granite' laminate vanity. It have been bugging me since we moved in!
Our bathroom is nautical themed so I got three of the same golden books about whales (so I wouldn't lose any illustrations that were on the other side of the page). I laid them down and put a sheet of clear perspex (I had it cut to fit around the basin perfectly) over the top and sealed that with silicone around the edges. I still need to put skirting on the remaining edge, but love it so much.
Such an excellent idea Maya, and you are right, it was so much fun!! My hubby loved 'curating the collage' ;) Here are some pics of our effort: https://www.flickr.com/photos/124800477@N06/sets/72157649348738985/

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Catherine - Tuesday, November 18, 2014 at 2:36PM

i love it - and it's re inspired me for a 1/2 way through project of mine.. I've done similar in our hallway - but I used music posters advertising gigs and festivals - I love how it looks in bars and cafes and wanted to recreate it at home... BUT I ran into a major problem when I got bubbles. Bad bubbles. Which, with my OCD nature just upset me too much to continue.. Result - half finished wall for a year now! Is yours really smooth? Do you think maybe smaller pages make that process easier? (Or smoother - ha ha) also - did you cover or seal it with anything afterwards? Thanks! I might start again.. And I might use recipe books!

Oh no! Bad bubbles :( I hear your OCD pain! If I got bad bubbles I think I would have cried and flung down my glue and I too would have left it for a year! What a shame that you got bubbles. Ok new plan. Can you try a different way of applying the glue? I reckon because you're using such big pieces - music posters - that maybe you need to apply just a bit of ModPodge to the wall (really lightly - I found that I got bubbles when I put the glue on just a smidge too thick) ONLY where the centre of the poster will end up being. Then arrange the poster on top - smooth down the centre to push any bad bubbles out to the side - and THEN get the brush and paint the four corners around the centre with the glue, and smooth down each edge of the poster bit by bit. And use a credit card if possible (although I found my fingers and sleeve worked just as well). Maybe that would help - would be much slower though. I hope that makes sense - I feel like I haven't explained what I mean very well, I'm sorry. I think I shall be sealing it with the Gilly's natural sealer the Kylie mentioned below!

Maya, it has turned out beautifully!!!!! Ok, you got me hooked - I have to do something about a half-finished powder room in the basement and this is the perfect solution. I will starting hunting for a suitable material. Thanks for new pics of Nala - she is such a good apprentice! Please tell Mr. Nerd I adore the travertine floor, he did a terrific job, too. I have wallpapered quite a few times in the past, it's one of my favourite DIY projects. And I am very anal about the seams being completely invisible, etc. The last time I wallpapered was in my previous house where I decided to start doing it on December 23rd and everybody thought I was nuts.

Woohoo! I am stoked that it gave you an idea for your half-finished powder room :) Nala is such a good and helpful apprentice! She loves all the little doggy pictures. This is the only time I have tried wallpaper. Hey, you gotta renovate or DIY when the inspiration strikes and if that's December 23rd, it's December 23rd. I admire your chutzpah.

Thank you! Took a while - I was very picky about precise page placement! But I actually reckon using smaller pages over big ones made it easier - less risk of getting an air bubble with a little piece of paper and having to do it over! :)

Maya, your loo looks fabulous!!!
I am not blogging these days (writing mine or reading other peoples) so I apologise for not replying to your comment about the above which I have only just seen!
(looks like you didn't need my advice anyway!)
For the record I sealed mine with Gilly Stephenson's Carnauba Polish. Made in W.A. you just polish it on and off with a soft rag. It is not glossy, smells delicious and is made of natural ingredients (which is especially important now that you are pregnant! Congratulations btw, such lovely news!) I applied two coats on mine and it has held up extremely well - even along the bottom edges which get a bit wet when I mop the floor.
I hope you feel better soon and I wish you all the best during your pregnancy and afterwards x

That's ok! And thank you for pregnancy well wishes! I did somehow fight through the brainless pregnancy haze and managed to remember your trick with the credit card and I will definitely look into getting Gilly Stephenson's Carnauba Polish - thank you. Sounds great. I'm sad that you're not blogging these days but I can also understand why. I haven't been reading as many blogs lately and have been rethinking the direction and my personal aspirations for mine. Lots of food for thought over Christmas. But I do hope you pick it up again down the track, I really enjoy your posts x

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Bree Handley - Saturday, March 14, 2015 at 1:33PM

Hi Maya, so inspired by your blog I picked up a 1939 Ladies Handbook and some vintage Life mags to do our toilet. I'm stuck searching for Mod Podge glue though.. I have tried Bunnings and Spotlight with no luck. Do you know somewhere in Perth we can but it from?
Kind thanks!
Bree

Oh, that's awesome! That will look so cool! (and be so funny to read! I love looking at vintage magazines and ladies handbooks, they are always hilarious!) I ordered my ModPodge online through eBay - but maybe you could try ringing arts and crafts stores, like Jacksons Art Supplies or Riot Art and Craft in Garden City? Or maybe try calling a scrapbooking shop like Starfish Lane in North Perth or Collins Craft in Balcatta? I am very surprised Spotlight don't stock it.... shame! It's such good stuff. Hope your project goes really well :)

Hi Tegan, I was advised by another blogger to use Gilly Stephenson's Carnauba Polish and it was a really good choice. It's great for decoupage and it smells delicious too. You just rub it on with a soft rag.

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Katie_buggers - Saturday, December 31, 2016 at 9:19AM

Does that finish make it water proof? I want to do this in my bathroom that has a shower (not IN the shower, that's all tiled) I want to use a 1975 Montgomery Ward catalog, the year the house was built, in the already authentic 70's bathroom it came with. I'm just so scared of it peeling!

Hi Katie! I LOVE that idea! Very cool! I don't think that product would make it waterproof though. It's quite satiny. What about several layers of Modpodge? I don't think it will make it waterproof but I think it would make it water-resistant. I am actually planning on Modpodging mine as well soon - ever since I had a little boy I have heard horror stories from friends with boys about toilet training little boys (great :-/) so I want to make mine as water-proof as I can now too. I will let you know how it goes (the water-proofing, not the toilet training).

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Jen Vlasman - Thursday, November 24, 2016 at 9:27PM

I love this so much. We are starting this project today using Harry Potter books. My wife is a fantastic.

I LOVE Harry Potter!! I've read every book three times! Awesome idea!! :)

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Daisy dee - Friday, January 13, 2017 at 6:23AM

I want to 'page-paper' my wall, but I would like to know what you ended up using for sealing it? Does the sealer make it wipeable? I am contemplating using a water based varnish to seal it. Any reason why that shouldn't work?

Hi Daisy. I am actually about to find and try out a new sealer to make ours waterproof as the one I used seals it but not to a wipeable, waterproof standard. I was thinking of applying a few layers of Modpodge, but even the Outdoor Modpodge is not fully waterproof, only water-resistant. You mentioned you are thinking of using a water-based varnish to seal it, but I am not confident if using a water-based product will give it good longevity. Have been doing some research and I think the best way to go would be to use an acrylic sealer or a decorator's varnish. I haven't done it yet myself but I will soon - will report back on her when I do! There is some information on the process here: http://living.thebump.com/waterproof-wallpaper-6570.html . Good luck!

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Rita Louw - Thursday, May 25, 2017 at 1:28PM

Hi Maya,
Found your french dictionary wallpaper wall very interesting. It looks fabulous! I Did the same but with magasine pages in my kitchen and sealed it with about 7 layers of modge podge and then again 7 layers of heat resistant varnish (Heritage). This made for an absolutely lovely finish which is completely waterproof and wipeable.
Rita Louw (South Africa)

Oh thank you Rita!! I still love it just as much. Wow I love the idea of doing it in a kitchen must look amazing! I haven't heard of this heat-resistant varnish.... I'll look it up! I just bought another product to seal it and am hoping it will be waterproof but if not I'll do what you did (if I can find Heritage!) Thank you for letting me know :)

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Deann - Thursday, June 1, 2017 at 11:54AM

I was wondering about the back of the page. Does it not show through when you do this? Thanks!

That's a good point! However so far I've been lucky, it's held up amazingly well, and I've also sealed it which has helped protect it. The good thing about using book pages is that if there are any tears/marks, you can just glue a new page on top! :)

I love the book you chose! I'm doing this to my bathroom and was googling inspirational projects. I plan to use General Finishes Flat Out Flat for my sealer. I used it several years ago on the counter for my shop and it's held up great! I wash the counter daily and it's only now beginning to show signs of wear. ????